Through the Looking Glass Children's Book Reviews

My Naughty Little Sister and Bad Harry Audio

My naughty little sister is, without a doubt, frequently a very naughty little girl, but she still has lots of friends. There is Mrs. Cocoa Jones next door and then there is a little boy who lives quite close by. His name is Harry but since he is so often such a naughty little boy, my naughty little sister calls him Bad Harry. One day my naughty little sister goes to Bad Harry’s house to play and it turns out to be one of THOSE days. Bad Harry and my naughty little sister cannot seem to stay out of trouble. First they mess up Harry’s father’s pile of sand in the garden. Then they get Harry’s mother’s washing all dirty. Poor Harry’s mother is at her wits end as to what she should do with the children so she decides to bring them indoors where she can “keep an eye” on both of them. Luckily for everyone the two little children soon find something highly entertaining to do which does not upset anyone.

In this collection of nine “my naughty little sister stories” we get the opportunity not only to enjoy and delight in the little girl and her naughty little friend, but we also meet their friends and family as well. We also see the loveable side of their characters, the side that makes one smile and feel proud of them. There is the time when my naughty little sister feels so sorry for the cold little stone baby Jesus statue who is lying in the manger in the church that she wraps him in her lovely soft scarf to try to warm him up. And what about the time when the two children make friends with the mouse in the library, secretly taking him scraps to eat without their mothers knowing.

Dorothy Edwards beautifully creates a world full of the small details that delight children. We get a sense of how things look, and smell and feel; we see things as they would appear to a small person, and we can enjoy these simple things with them delighting in the naughty and funny things that these children do. Edwards clearly understands the small worlds that children inhabit, appreciating what excites and interests them.

Jan Francis superbly tells this story, capturing the frustration, joy, humour, and naughtiness that the characters in this story experience.